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WASHINGTON— Afghan President Hamid Karzai, in a meeting with U.S. National Security Advisor Susan Rice, proposed new terms for a deal governing troop withdrawal from Afghanistan and said he is in no hurry to sign the accord, the White House said on Monday.

"President Karzai outlined new conditions for signing the agreement and indicated he is not prepared to sign the BSA promptly,'' the White House said in a readout of the meeting between the two officials.

Karzai has persistently raised questions about the pact, which would enable U.S. troops to operate in the country beyond next year. An assembly of Afghan elders on Sunday endorsed the deal and advised Karzai to sign it promptly.

However, the Afghan president said he would not sign it until after a presidential election due in April. There should be peace in Afghanistan before the deal is signed, he said.

In Kabul, Karzai's spokesman said the Afghan president wanted to the United States to halt all military operations on civilians' homes and return Afghan citizens held in the Guantanamo prison camp before the pact is signed.

File - U.S. National Security Advisor Susan Rice.

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File - U.S. National Security Advisor Susan Rice.

Rice, who made a three-day visit to Afghanistan to visit U.S. troops, told Karzai it is "not viable'' to defer signing the deal until after the election, the White House said.

"It would not provide the United States and NATO allies the clarity necessary to plan for a potential post-2014 military presence,'' she said.

"Without a prompt signature, the U.S. would have no choice but to initiate planning for a post-2014 future in which there would be no U.S. or NATO troop presence in Afghanistan,'' she added.

Comments page of 2

Why would we have any agreement with a country that is going to bring stoning back as punishment? We should get out and have them figure it out on their own and on their own money.This is a waste of time and effort.

by: chas from: USA

November 26, 2013 1:44 PM

Time to leave Karzai and his country's only real cash crop, opium poppies used to produce heroin, to the mercies of the Taliban. Heron is a very valuable crop as Karzai knows, knows in the Biblical sense. It's not worth a US inspired coup to get someone to sign on the dotted line. Its not worth the bad PR. and we should thank God we're not leaving another never ending civil war behind us here. We all at least should be smart enough to know the Taliban will quickly bring a medieval kind of peace to the Afghans and their resume when in power did include one bright spot - no poppy growing. It's time to face reality like the Soviets did before us and get out of Dodge.

by: edwould@techie.com from: USA

November 26, 2013 11:00 AM

Why do you call this the Voice of America. You've censored every truth I've tried to tell. What's your cut on this deal?

In Response

by: edwould@techie.com from: USA

November 26, 2013 11:59 AM

Thank You VOA for posting my comments. I'm sorry I accused you of censorship. Now, if we could just get most of the U.S. mainstream media to stop selectively suppressing U.S. Citizen's Freedom of Speech when same conflicts with their Profit-Optimized Propaganda Model, then maybe we can recover something of a 'Press', that thing the Constitution speaks of that supposedly enables the robust expansion of democratic principles. Maybe the Press wasn't supported by advertising revenue in 1776, or maybe King George just didn't give them enough business.

by: edwould@techie.com from: USA

November 26, 2013 10:57 AM

This is likely the most expensive drug war that the U.S. has ever fought. Too bad it was for the purpose of expanding drug production and use instead of curbing it. Nothing that the federal government does will appear to make sense or serve any logical purpose until we remove the CIA, the MIC, organized crime, the political parties, the influential families, the lobbyists, and all the other influences and influentials that take our money and use it against us to get rich. If we change nothing, nothing will change.

by: edwould from: usa

November 26, 2013 10:48 AM

Isn't that just the way it always works. You invade a country in late 2001 under the false pretense of hunting down Bin Laden when the CIA likely knew Bin Laden probably wasn't in the country in the first place. You then free most of the opium growers that were imprisoned by the Taliban during their drug eradication efforts that resulted in a 90% reduction in opium production in 2001. You restore opium production to record levels exceeding the previous highs made before the Taliban's eradication programs started and let the CIA do what they do best, provide false intelligence and deal drugs.

You use your power and money to place a former CIA associate and brother of the biggest opium dealer in the country as a puppet President and then funnel him hundreds of millions of dollars of U.S. taxpayer money to keep him happy while the CIA rakes in the cash on a global scale. You send a bunch of 18 year old kids, the sons and daughters of your fellow U.S. Citizens, to be killed and maimed for life in the fake manhunt for Bin Laden that later strangely morphs into into a liberation and/or reconstruction mission for Afghanistan. You continue looking for Bin Laden in all the wrong places while you let insider U.S. contractors make a fortune reconstructing a country that didn't need reconstructing before you tore it up pretending to look for Bin Laden in all the wrong places.

And now that it's time to move on to new Bush/CIA/MIC/Carlyle/NSA/ fake wars and frauds, the puppet you installed as President and made rich wants you to let out all the Taliban operatives that your keeping in a dungeon so that the Taliban won't waste his crony butt when you leave. You can't do that, those guys in the dungeon KNOW TOO MUCH AND IF THEY'RE LET OUT, THEY'LL TALK TO THE INTERNATIONAL PRESS. Man, it just goes to show, nobody's got any character or trustworthiness anymore. You try to help a guy restore his country to the former world drug empire that it once was before the Taliban boogeymen ruined it and this is what you get. Now I'm wondering who will get Karzai first, the Taliban, or the CIA. Thanks George, we're STILL reaping dividends from your eight year invasion of the United States.

by: American from: United States

November 26, 2013 9:48 AM

I welcome the full withdraw of US troops from the Middle East. Stop the aid and let a localized solution correct the issues facing that side of the world. Time to let the Saudis take a leadership role, whether they like it or not.

by: John Del Rosario from: Katy, texas

November 26, 2013 9:38 AM

Bring our soldiers back home and protect our shores from here, the USA. Karzai has nothing to trade for American lives. Tyrador

by: John Del Rosario from: Katy, texas

November 26, 2013 9:32 AM

Karzai or his country is not worth another American life. Bring the soldiers home!!!!

by: guapo from: usa

November 26, 2013 9:30 AM

It's time we stopped aiding countries who would turn on us should the right carrot be held in front of them by any other country. Tell Karzai explicitly that we are out of his country unless he signs directly and then he can explain to his people where 4 billion in aid from the US citizens went to. In my opinion we should get all personnel out of his country immediately, they are not worth a single US or any other countries life.

In Response

by: rg787 from: Roswell, New Mexico USA

November 28, 2013 10:39 AM

Your post is right on. It is time we stopped funding a small corrupt group of theives whose only purpose is to take our money and line their own pockets. We need to stop trying to impose our type of government, of the people, to nations of people who still live in a tribal world and have never known any form of government or rulers other than tribal war lords or brutal dictators.

by: Haron from: Afghanistan

November 26, 2013 4:15 AM

we civilians tired from this condition. we wish and hope that we could take our responsibilities without any countries' troops.we welcome and appreciate if NATO and US troops leave our country.

In Response

by: Concerned Citizen from: Earth

November 26, 2013 9:37 AM

and we Americans are TIRED of defending and trying to help those who don't to either be helped OR take responsibility to regulate AND police THEIR OWN PEOPLE! I say we leave TOO and let whatever happens to that country AND their to suffer their own fate, NOT OUR PROBLEM!

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